He handed her a steaming porcelain cup, and she gently blew on it. She sat at the kitchen table, legs crossed underneath her, as she opened the tea bag and dunked the ginger tea into the hot water.
"How did things go before he got sick?" Harry asked, sitting across from her.
"Everything was fine," she said, blowing the billows of steam away from her cup. "Went to Diagon Alley, did everything we needed to do- his books are preordered and his robes will be ready Thursday. We got ourselves some ice cream too, for good measure."
"Great," he said. "I appreciate you minding him more than you know."
She just shrugged. Yesterday had been nice until Teddy got sick. It was the very least she could do for Harry after all he had done for her.
"We ran into Ron and Hermione at Madame Malkin's," she said between sips of tea. She had hoped the ginger would soothe her stomach, but instead it just seemed to cause it to churn more.
"Oh?" He asked. Behind him, the clock chimed six times.
"Hermione's very kind," she said. "Mentioned you've been dodging her attempts to make plans."
"We've been busy," he explained. She raised an eyebrow at him, pressing him for the real reason. "And I didn't want to overwhelm you while you were settling in here... I wasn't ready to share you."
Despite the exhaustion and upset stomach, she smiled. It somehow seemed less daunting to meet his friends now that things between them were starting to fall into place. "Well, perhaps we can have them around for dinner this week."
He smiled at her. "I'd like that."
The exhaustion was starting to give way to sleepiness. Her eyelids grew heavy as light streamed in the window, washing the kitchen in pale light.
"Why don't we get you up to bed?"
She placed their tea cups in the sink before following him upstairs. "How are you not exhausted?"
"Still coming down from the adrenaline," he said, and she nodded. She should've known, she thought, as she climbed under the covers of his bed. He closed the curtains for her as she got comfortable.
She patted his side of the bed, wanting him to join her. "I'm going to shower first," he said, pressing a kiss onto her forehead. "I'll join you soon."
She slept fitfully, tossing and turning. At some point, she was so warm that she had sleepily kicked the covers off. When she woke up, she was drenched in sweat that made the thin sheet cling to her skin. She peeled it off, enjoying the fresh air against her damp skin.
The other side of the bed was empty, and she briefly wondered where Harry had gone. A quick glance at the clock told her it was early afternoon. He had probably taken Teddy home.
She slowly got up, her bones aching and resisting the movement. She found herself hunched over the sink in the bathroom, splashing cold water on her face. It must have just been warm in the house, she couldn't possibly have caught whatever Teddy had. She soaked a washcloth in the sink, before wringing it out and hanging it around her neck. Using her fingers, she managed to get her dark hair piled into a bun at the top of her head, cooling her off immensely.
She changed, grabbing a clean t-shirt out of her pile of folded laundry, and tiptoed down the stairs, in case Harry was asleep downstairs. As she descended, she heard the radio on, the sounds of a Quidditch game filling the air. Harry was somehow wide awake, doing what Liv quickly recognized as all the paperwork that followed last night's stake out.
"Hey, you," he said, moving a stack of paperwork off the couch so she could sit next to him. She grabbed a blanket off the arm of the couch and wrapped it around herself before settling in next to him. She had gone from sweaty to clammy, as it seemed the first floor was always a bit cool. "Sleep well?"
She nodded, covering her mouth as she yawned. "How's Teddy?"
Harry sighed, closing the file he had been furiously scribbling in. "He woke up as if he'd never been sick."
"Wow," she said, admiring the resiliency of youth. Her head, which felt especially heavy, was drawn to rest on Harry's shoulder. He placed his arm around her, gently rubbing her back.
"Yeah, lucky kid," Harry remarked. He quickly glanced down at his wrist, checking the time. "Andromeda was here about two hours ago to get him. I've just been trying to get some things taken care of before we're back to work tomorrow."
She picked up a piece of parchment he had placed to the side, skimming what it said about his work. She knew she would get the full report in the morning, but her curiosity was piqued. "Did you get any sleep?"
He shrugged, before getting up from the couch. "A bit, but I'm going to crash soon I'm sure. Was thinking about ordering some Chinese food, you interested?"
"Sure," she said, standing up to stretch. No matter what, she couldn't seem to get rid of the deep ache plaguing her muscles. It was probably attributed to sleeping poorly and sharing a bed with a very sick thirteen year old. Somehow, Teddy had managed to take up most of the bed, leaving her with just a sliver of the mattress. That had to be the reason her back felt so stiff.
Harry listed options off of the menu of his favorite Chinese food place, and Liv vetoed what she didn't like. While Harry called and placed the order, Liv ran upstairs to change. She traded her pajamas for a pair of workout pants and a tank, and put her trainers on. Maybe a good walk would loosen her up. The fresh air certainly couldn't hurt… she was already a little concerned about catching whatever bug Teddy had been struck by. Unfortunately, the London air was thick and oppressive against her skin, causing sweat to bead up again. Luckily, the walk to the Chinese place wasn't too far.
"You want utensils?" the clerk asked, after she paid for the greasy brown paper bag full of food. Before Liv could respond, the middle aged Chinese woman stuffed a handful of plastic forks and knives into the top of the bag. She hoisted it into Liv's hands, as she couldn't help but smile at the fact the woman thought they had ordered enough food for a party. Perhaps they had gone a bit overboard…
The bag, full of steaming hot food, was so heavy it required her to carry it with both hands. The smell of pork fried rice and lo mein had her stomach grumbling by the time she climbed the stairs into the house. She expected to see Harry in his spot on the couch, and was a bit thrown off when he was nowhere to be found.
"Harry?" she called, up the stairs. "I'm back with dinner."
"I'll be right down," he called, his voice sounding a bit tense.
"Who's down there?" Liv heard an unfamiliar woman's voice ask.
Her stomach flipped. She'd been gone twenty minutes, who could possibly be here? Who could possibly be upstairs? It didn't sound like Hermione's voice, and Hermione would've known to expect Liv around the house. She was frozen in her spot, at the bottom of the stairs, the bag of food beginning to slip in her hands. Before she could shake things off, she heard two sets of footsteps pattering down the steps, and quickly went into the kitchen. She grabbed plates from the cupboard, but kept her ear tuned to see who was here.
"It's just a friend—"
"The friend Hermione told me about?"
A loud sigh. "Probably—"
"Can I meet her?" an eager voice pleaded.
"Ginny, can we please—"
His ex-wife. Liv's stiff muscles turned to ice. This sensation must have been what rigor mortis felt like. She was unsure why she felt threatened and uneasy with Ginny in the house, when Harry had given no indication there was even any shadow of a relationship there. Liv felt her hands grow sweaty as she unboxed the white cartons brimming with food.
She was slightly reassured by the tense tone of voice he used with her. She could nearly picture his jaw tight, arms crossed, a stance she had not seen from him in their private lives.
"Oh, come on, don't be like that—"
"What are you here for?" he asked. Liv could tell now that they were standing in the landing half a floor up. Ginny must have been well aware that Liv could hear every word they were saying, but Liv had no idea what to do. Go to the stairs and introduce herself? Stay where she was? Pretend she didn't hear anything?
"Mum sent me," Ginny said slowly. "She still hasn't received your RSVP to Charlie's wedding, and it was due last week."
Liv's mind went to work, trying to put things together. When she had seen Ron and Hermione yesterday, they'd spoken of Charlie's wedding too. She placed a large scoop of rice onto a plate, keeping her hands busy.
"Ah, yeah…" Harry trailed off, before his ex wife cut him off once more.
"Now, of course we know you and Teddy are coming," the way she phrased it didn't make it sound optional. "And normally, we wouldn't question it, but it seems you've got a new bird in your life and of course, Mum would like to extend an invitation to her as well."
It was slightly aggressive, and in an indiscernible tone, but a lot of the fear and anxiety in Liv's stomach dissipated.
"I…" Harry trailed off. "I'll speak with her and be in touch with Molly, then. Thank you."
"Nonsense, if she's just downstairs, I'll extend the invitation myself—"
"Ginny—"
Before he could catch up to her, the spritely red-head bounded into the kitchen. Liv looked up at her, the feeling of ice filling her belly once more. She was shorter than Liv had expected, but she still managed to intimidate her. Harry was only a few steps behind her, the tops of his ears tinged red with embarrassment at letting his ex-wife push him around like that.
"Hi th-there," Liv said, cursing herself for stuttering. Out of embarrassment. Had she known they were going to be ambushed by Ginny, she probably would have worn clean trainers or a less ratty tank top or actually brushed her hair. Instead, she was flushed, and disheveled, and felt like she was taking up too much space, though there wasn't much she could do about that.
"Aren't you going to introduce us, Harry?" Ginny asked, prodding at Harry. Seeing them next to each other, despite the frustration evident on Harry's face, made the tiny hairs on the back of her neck stand up.
"I— sure. Ginny, this is Liv," Harry said. Liv briefly caught Harry's eye, and he looked apologetic. Liv willed her hand to stop trembling for long enough to give Ginny a strong handshake.
"It's wonderful to meet you, Liv," Ginny said, eyeing her up and down.
"Likewise," Liv said, though it sounded more like a question than a statement. "Will you be staying for dinner?"
Before she could truly comprehend the statement, it was out of her mouth. But she couldn't be petty and rude, especially when Ginny had given her no explicit reason to be petty and rude.
"No," Harry said, rather forcefully. "She'll be leaving."
Ginny scowled at Harry, but playfully, in a gesture that made Liv feel awkward to have witnessed it. "Thank you for the invitation, but I can see my ex-husband does not want me here."
Liv had truly nothing to say to Ginny, and the moment passed with a heavy silence before she continued. "Do you have plans the Saturday after next?"
"I... I would have to look at a calendar," Liv said, glancing between Ginny and Harry. She couldn't discern from the look on Harry's face what he wanted her to do. If he didn't want to take her as a date, well, she didn't want to insert herself. Liv wasn't particularly enthusiastic about spending an evening with Harry's ex-wife's extended family. "But, I'm free, probably. Why?"
"Wonderful. And you've got a nice pair of dress robes?" Ginny asked, eyeing her up once again. "Well, you ran in the Quidditch circles, I'm sure you have a suitable outfit."
"Why?" Liv asked again, slower.
"My brother's getting married, big affair. Open bar- my family knows how to throw a party, have him tell you about our wedding sometime," she said, touching Liv's arm as if they were friends. She recoiled immediately, crossing her arms over her chest. A brief glance at Harry reassured her, as his brow furrowed in disdain.
"Anyways... Harry got a plus one. I'm glad he'll finally be able to use it. I'll make sure Mum knows you're bringing someone, Harry."
"Great," he said, sounding extra unimpressed. "But I think it's dinner time, Ginny, why don't I escort you to the Floo?"
"Fine," she huffed. "Lovely to meet you, Liv, I'll see you at the wedding."
"Take care," Liv said, without looking up. Harry strong-armed her towards the fireplace, giving her no option. Liv busied herself, piling a heap of chicken lo mein onto her plate and sitting down at the table to eat.
"I'm so sorry, Liv," Harry said as he rejoined her in the kitchen. "I had no idea she was going to stop over."
"Don't worry about it," she said quickly, between shoveling bites of noodles in her mouth.
He made himself a plate of food, and sat across from her. He didn't say anything, which left her with just a little too much silence for her comfort. Was he upset that she agreed to go to the wedding? Was he embarrassed of her? Did he not want his former in-laws to see who he was dating? Was it because she had a rocky history with him and Ron? Did he not like her enough to take her out in public, as a date? Was it just too soon? Was she not pretty enough?
It had been years since he and Ginny split up, and she had moved on. Why couldn't he? If he didn't want to take Liv as a date somewhere, should she even be living with him? Maybe she should have done the hard thing and moved right into her own place. Her stomach tightened at the thoughts she was allowing herself to think.
She let her thoughts torment her, to the sound of Harry's fork scraping his plate. The thoughts bubbled up within her, until she could hardly stand not saying anything.
"I don't have to go to the wedding with you," she said, the words coming out quickly. "If you'd rather go by yourself, I won't be mad."
"No, Liv-" he sighed. "That's not it at all. I just..."
She put her hand on her chest as it tightened and seized. Out of nowhere, she found herself diving towards the trash can to vomit.
"Oh, dear," Harry said, getting out of her way.
She heaved into the bin, the muscles in her stomach protesting against the sudden and violent reaction. It seemed, after all, she was not going to escape Teddy's illness.
When her stomach quelled, she felt her cheeks burning in embarrassment at having thrown up in front of Harry.
"I... need to go upstairs," she said, bounding towards the third floor without a backwards glance. By the time she got there, she knew her stomach was going to betray her once more so she locked herself in the hallway bathroom. Although it was not nearly as nice as the bathroom en suite to Harry's room, it would do. She locked the door behind her as she prepared to empty her stomach once more.
Between vomiting spells, she lay against the tile floor, letting the chilly porcelain take the edge of heat off her. There was violence in her stomach where there previously had been ice. The spicy food she had eaten burned her throat as she heaved until there felt like there was nothing left to throw up. She flushed the toilet and leaned her back against the cool porcelain tub.
Harry knocked quietly on the door. "Can I come in?"
Liv didn't want to see him right now. Her face was bright red, she was covered in sweat.
"I'm fine," she called, her voice hoarse.
"Please?" He asked. "I've got medicine, it'll make you feel better."
She considered it for a second, before leaning up and unlocking the door. He resisted the urge to take in what a mess she was, and instead set up the vials of medicine on the sink.
He grabbed a washcloth and doused it in cold water before handing it to her. She immediately used it to cover her face, hoping it would soothe the irritation. Her eyes welled with tears under the cover of the cloth.
"Take this," Harry said, squatting in front of her and placing a small glass dropper in her hand. "It will settle your stomach."
She took a deep breath, the air searing against her acid irritated throat, and lifted the cloth off her face, moving it to the back of her neck instead. She squeezed the dropper full of medicine under her tongue, wincing at the bitter taste. Once she swallowed it, Harry replaced the dropper and sat down next to her.
She closed her eyes, resting her head against the porcelain tub. He reached out to grab her hand, using his thumb to soothingly rub circles into her palm. She tried to focus on taking deep breaths, as the medicine started to work. She no longer felt quite as queasy.
"Did that help?" Harry asked after some time had passed.
"I think so," she said. "My stomach feels a little better."
"Good," he said, quietly. "Why don't we get you into bed? Do you think you can get there okay?"
She took his hand getting help up, and he helped her into bed. There, he crafted a cocktail of potions that he promised would aide all her troubles. He opened one of the windows, letting the fresh air and sound of rain drift in.
"You should feel much better once this kicks in," he said, lightly brushing her hair off her face.
Liv didn't get sick often, but she had never felt so taken care of. She didn't quite know how to feel... but she didn't hate it.
Her eyelids grew heavy, and she couldn't keep them open any longer. As she briefly fought sleep, she could hear Harry dim the lights so she could drift off peacefully.
Author's Note: Here's Monday's chapter! Chapter posting times may be a little off from the usual over the next week or so, as I'm travelling, but chapters will be posted on the day they're supposed to be. Evergreen thanks to potter-reading-coastie, my excellent Beta. Reviews appreciated!